It's been a little minute...
Oh, look, I'm back again!
Today I bring you an obvious choice for the birthday of the United States of America:
Video posted by The Ed Sullivan Show
"God Bless America" by Irving Berlin, sung by the man himself with the backing of the Girl and Boy Scouts of America (to whom, as it happens, all profits from the song have gone since 1940, via the God Bless America Fund).
Now, I can just hear you gathering your breath to point out all the song's flaws--jingoistic, simplistic, schmaltzy, sappy, sickly sweet, etc., etc. ... Whatever. As it happens, Irving Berlin himself did not think it was a very good song, at least not at first. He wrote it during WWI for the army-produced show "Yip, Yip, Yaphank," but rather than use it he decided it was, as he put it, “just a little sticky,” and put it away. He only fished it out of his trunk when Kate Smith approached him for a song to sing on Armistice Day 1938, rewriting it a bit before handing it over.
And here's the thing: Show business professional Irving Berlin may have found the song "a little sticky." But Irving Berlin, the desperately poor refugee who grew up to be, well, IRVING BERLIN--that's the Irving Berlin who wrote "God Bless America" and meant every word. And he meant it even more when he rewrote it, changing it from a patriotic war song to what he called a peace song. Which is why it's so easy to tear up when hearing it, critical faculties be damned.
Happy July 4th, all!
Sources:
Forward, "A 'God Bless America' Timeline.
IrvingBerlin.com, "God Bless America."
The New York Times, "The Rich and Complicated History of 'God Bless America.'"
The New York Times, "The Complicated DNA of 'God Bless America.'"
Performing Songwriter.com, "Irving Berlin's "God Bless America."
Today I bring you an obvious choice for the birthday of the United States of America:
"God Bless America" by Irving Berlin, sung by the man himself with the backing of the Girl and Boy Scouts of America (to whom, as it happens, all profits from the song have gone since 1940, via the God Bless America Fund).
Now, I can just hear you gathering your breath to point out all the song's flaws--jingoistic, simplistic, schmaltzy, sappy, sickly sweet, etc., etc. ... Whatever. As it happens, Irving Berlin himself did not think it was a very good song, at least not at first. He wrote it during WWI for the army-produced show "Yip, Yip, Yaphank," but rather than use it he decided it was, as he put it, “just a little sticky,” and put it away. He only fished it out of his trunk when Kate Smith approached him for a song to sing on Armistice Day 1938, rewriting it a bit before handing it over.
And here's the thing: Show business professional Irving Berlin may have found the song "a little sticky." But Irving Berlin, the desperately poor refugee who grew up to be, well, IRVING BERLIN--that's the Irving Berlin who wrote "God Bless America" and meant every word. And he meant it even more when he rewrote it, changing it from a patriotic war song to what he called a peace song. Which is why it's so easy to tear up when hearing it, critical faculties be damned.
Happy July 4th, all!
Sources:
Forward, "A 'God Bless America' Timeline.
IrvingBerlin.com, "God Bless America."
The New York Times, "The Rich and Complicated History of 'God Bless America.'"
The New York Times, "The Complicated DNA of 'God Bless America.'"
Performing Songwriter.com, "Irving Berlin's "God Bless America."
Other obvious choices would be "You're a Grand Old Flag" and "The Yankee Doodle Dandy" by George M. Cohan. And less obviously, you've got "America" by Neil Diamond, and "Fanfare for the Common Man" by Aaron Copeland.
ReplyDeleteAlas, despite the similarity of Cohan to Cohen, George M. was an Irish Roman Catholic, and the Cohan was an Americanization of Keohane. But the other two are excellent and I will use them in the future!
DeletePerfect! ������������
ReplyDeleteIt looks like emojis don’t show up in comments, either. But thank you!
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